


Imagine

by moonrise31



Series: once, twice, and again until it's over [25]
Category: TWICE (Band)
Genre: F/F, long live school meal club, ot9 mentions of course, squint for sanayeon, squint harder for jeonghyo
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-11
Updated: 2020-03-11
Packaged: 2021-02-28 19:34:42
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,738
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23102557
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/moonrise31/pseuds/moonrise31
Summary: In which Tzuyu and Dahyun meet again after three years, and discover exactly what has and hasn’t changed since leaving the safety of their schoolyard crushes.Alternatively, in which Tzuyu finds a dragon, Dahyun strongly considers shooting it, and Nayeon wants the both of them to stop being so goddamn dramatic.
Relationships: Chou Tzuyu/Kim Dahyun
Series: once, twice, and again until it's over [25]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/935700
Comments: 3
Kudos: 93





	Imagine

**Author's Note:**

  * For [likeuwuahh](https://archiveofourown.org/users/likeuwuahh/gifts).



> happy birthday, zeb!! you are kind and soft and deserve the world, even if you almost never let me win <3

Tzuyu woke to alarm bells ringing.

She’d drawn her curtains before going to sleep; but the fabric was thin, letting the orange light from outside filter through and cast muted shadows on the opposite wall of her bedroom. Tzuyu swung her legs over the edge of her mattress, stepping half-blindly until her toes found the insides of her boots. She grabbed her cloak from where she’d tossed it at the foot of her bed, sparing a glance at the oil lamp sitting unlit on her nightstand before urgent shouts finally registered in her ears. 

The fire was bright enough, anyway, Tzuyu decided, and stumbled out of her room to see if her parents were awake.

Her mother was already in the hallway, and further down her father stood by the front door, shrugging on his coat over his sleepshirt. The three of them quickly rushed out to scan the rest of the village. To the east, smoke dulled the night sky, and the row of houses lined up just below it crackled with bright, hungry flames. 

Tzuyu’s first thought was to find Nayeon. The older girl was no doubt already on her way with Momo in tow, reviewing every water-based spell in her repertoire under her breath as she went. But the fire would be hard to subdue even with magic, especially at this scale -- 

A black streak fell through the sky, cutting into the haze of smoke. Tzuyu blinked and it was gone -- probably landed somewhere behind the burning houses. She stepped forward, eyes scanning the distant blaze for even just a flicker of misplaced shadow. “I’ll be right back.”

“Wait,“ her father started, but Tzuyu was already off. 

“Be careful,” her mother called after her, just barely audible over her cloak flapping against the waves of hot wind blowing through the village. Tzuyu sidestepped families running in the opposite direction: mothers with wailing children wrapped tightly in their arms as worried fathers cast constant glances behind them, torn between getting their loved ones out safely and joining the fight to save their homes. Shouts filled the air as neighbors organized water bucket lines, preparing to keep the flames from spreading until Nayeon arrived. 

Ducking through the side streets turned out to be much quicker; minutes later, Tzuyu barely managed to slide to a full stop before red heat blasted her face. The burning house in front of her was unfamiliar, but it was only the first of the fiercely burning block of residences. Tzuyu wrapped her cloak a little more tightly around herself to fend off wayward sparks, and then looped around to the back, where she thought the streak from the sky might have landed. 

She rubbed the sting out of her eyes with the edge of her sleeve. Several meters ahead of her, a dark form crouched next to the flaming house. But even at this distance, she knew exactly what she was looking at.

Tzuyu had never seen a dragon in the flesh before, so she was a little surprised at how small it was -- no larger than the horses Mina’s family would lend for traveling to and from the nearest large town. Its scales glinted an earthy red, leathery wings half-folded against its ridged spine as it stared back at Tzuyu with coal-black eyes. 

“Hello,” Tzuyu breathed, voice lost in the roar of the flames licking dangerously close. The dragon raised its snout, following her movement as she stepped closer. “Are you alright?”

The dragon huffed, a burst of black smoke leaving its nostrils. Then it shifted, claws clicking against the gravel below. When it settled again, Tzuyu spotted a smear of crimson on the stones. She glanced up, tracing from its claws and past the bend of the dragon’s front knee, up past the scaly torso and back down again along the spiny tail curled delicately around its feet.

“You’re bleeding,” Tzuyu murmured. “But from where? Will you let me see?” She took another step forward, slowly crouching down as she did so. At this distance, the dragon could probably knock her in the head if it opened its wings. 

Tzuyu took one more step. And then another. The dragon craned its neck to watch, but otherwise sat perfectly still. She could see each irregular heave of its chest -- two or three fast breaths followed by one deep one. She slowly extended her hand, hovering just above the heated scales as she glanced at the dragon. It blinked slowly. 

“Will you let me?” She whispered.

The house behind them cracked. A hot piece of shingle landed centimeters from Tzuyu’s feet, and she jerked back with a yell. The dragon roared. It whipped its tail into the side of the house as its front leg lashed out. Sharp claws tore through Tzuyu’s sleeve as she tumbled away and onto the ground.

She clutched her arm, quickly rolling further from both the fire and the dragon. She scrambled to her feet, eyes on the creature now struggling to stand. Aggravated puffs of smoke streamed from the dragon’s mouth as it unfolded and then refolded its wings, crooked and uncoordinated. 

“Miss, please step back!”

Tzuyu whipped around. Her eyes widened first at the bowstring pulled taut, and then the razor sharp arrow aimed straight at the soft underside of the flailing dragon’s jaw. Then she noticed the ranger herself, and couldn’t help but gape a little. “Dahyun-unnie?”

Dahyun’s gaze flicked to her, then back to the dragon. And then back to her again suddenly, as if just registering the familiarity of her face. “Tzuyu?”

“Don’t shoot,” Tzuyu said. She began to back away from the house, towards Dahyun. “It didn’t do anything.”

Dahyun stared blankly for another second, and then returned her attention to the dragon. “It literally set the village on fire.” Tzuyu winced, the sting of her wound now settling in above the adrenaline. Dahyun’s gaze sharpened, knuckles tightening as she pulled the arrow back further. “And you’re hurt.”

“It was my fault,” said Tzuyu, pulling the edge of her cloak over her bad arm. “I got close and startled it. Please don’t shoot.” The dragon grunted and whined behind her. Its next sound was the heavy crunch of gravel as it collapsed back onto the ground. Tzuyu clenched her teeth. “Please, unnie.”

Dahyun remained silent, lips pressed into a thin line. Then she jerked her head to one side, bow still drawn and eyes on the dragon as she began to move to the right. “Let’s get you out of here.”

They carefully shuffled back around to the front of the house, although the dragon didn’t even bother to lift its head as they retreated. Then Dahyun quickly ushered Tzuyu over the fence and into the street, a safe distance away from the fire. Tzuyu heaved a sigh of relief as the cooler night air brushed against her flushed face, barely registering when Dahyun pulled aside her cloak and wrapped her fingers around Tzuyu’s wrist.

“Let me see,” Dahyun said, carefully extending Tzuyu’s arm enough to push the sleeve up almost to her shoulder. The scratch ran along the back of her forearm, an angry line of red connecting the inside of her elbow with the protruding bone on the side of her wrist. “It hurts, right?” Dahyun said quietly. “Let me patch that up for you.”

“Thanks,” Tzuyu mumbled. Then further down the street, a blue light flashed, followed by a thunderous hissing. Tzuyu turned her head slightly, watching as a figure clad in black walked confidently to the next house and raised both arms; a rippling beam crashed down from somewhere above the smoke, glittering like sunshine on the river meandering along the outskirts of the village. In seconds, it had reduced the fire to an enormous white cloud of smoke and steam.

Nayeon went down the block like this, the blackened walls and charred roofs of each rescued house briefly visible through the thick mist before the cool darkness of the night enveloped them once more. 

“She’s good at that,” said Dahyun, now spreading a mint green paste along Tzuyu’s arm; its icy tingle almost made her miss the heat of the fire from just minutes before, but the feeling of Dahyun’s warm fingertips gently rubbing on the paste was not entirely unpleasant.

“Wait.” Tzuyu twisted, trying to look over her shoulder. “The dragon --”

“I saw it fly off just now,” Dahyun said, unrolling a strip of gauze before tearing it with her teeth. “Maybe it sensed the magic and finally gathered the strength to escape. Stop moving, Tzuyu-yah.”

Tzuyu stilled. She watched as Dahyun carefully wrapped the gauze all the way up her forearm. The buzz at the back of her mind still worried over the dragon, thinking that maybe Dahyun was fibbing just to make her feel better. But watching Dahyun’s expression as she tied off the ends of the gauze -- brow furrowed and the tip of her tongue peeking out from between her lips -- softened the prickling into cottonball memories of the days she’d spent before and after school with Chaeyoung and Dahyun. Back then, the older of the three combated their long, monotonous lessons with tall tales of teachers that probably slept in coffins underneath the schoolhouse, and the haunted well in the yard that a werewolf would climb out of once a month if you tossed the bucket in and hit the reflection of the full moon in the water below.

“I can walk you home,” said Dahyun now -- had it already been two years since they’d gone their separate ways? Maybe three. “Wait here just a second, okay? I’m going to check in with Captain Yoo first.” Dahyun jogged off, bow now slung over her shoulder and quiver of arrows hanging next to it, bouncing against her back with each step. 

Tzuyu didn’t move, staring after Dahyun and trying not to think of the gentle chill in her arm, or the sudden blaze of warmth in her face that had nothing to do with the fires Nayeon had yet to put out.

\--

(“You’re staring again,” said Chaeyoung.

Tzuyu snapped her head back to face the other girl. “Staring at what?”

“Don’t play dumb, you dummy,” Chaeyoung laughed. “It’s okay to have a crush.” She rolled her eyes. “Even if it’s on Dahyun-unnie, of all people.”

“I don’t have a crush,” Tzuyu said swiftly, scowling when Chaeyoung only raised her eyebrows in response. Tzuyu huffed, returning her attention to the soccer game taking place in the middle of the schoolyard. She personally didn’t find the sport that fun, and Chaeyoung preferred to draw or ask Tzuyu about her opinions on poetry instead of running around and getting sweaty. 

Dahyun was always ready for a game, though, and so the other two ended up watching from the sidelines while she yelled for the ball or tried to intimidate the opposing team by flapping her arms in some kind of griffin imitation; it proved to be surprisingly effective.

If Tzuyu was to stare at Dahyun -- which she hadn’t been, but hypothetically -- she would say it would only be because Dahyun managed to make awkwardness look graceful, her fumbled footwork still somehow resulting in a clean pass or a clear shot at the goal. And Dahyun’s expression when she’s concentrating was another mystery Tzuyu was always trying to solve, how the glint in her stare and the jut of her jaw could probably move the tallest and most ancient of mountains, given the time -- 

Chaeyoung laughed, again, elbow digging into Tzuyu’s side. “Dummy,” she hummed. The afternoon sunlight dancing in her eyes almost made up for the teasing gaze she pinned Tzuyu with.

Still, Tzuyu pointedly refused to look at Chaeyoung -- or Dahyun -- for the rest of their lunch break.)

\--

A week after meeting the dragon, Dahyun ended up on Tzuyu’s doorstep.

“Do you want to come in?” Tzuyu stepped aside while her mother bustled around the kitchen in the background, muttering about how she didn’t know that Tzuyu had a ranger friend and that their house was entirely too much of a mess.

Dahyun smiled briefly, clasping her hands behind her back. “That’s alright, I don’t want to trouble you. I just dropped by to check on things after, ah, you know. After the dragon, and everything.”

“We can sit outside,” said Tzuyu. She motioned for Dahyun to take a seat on the front step before quietly shutting the door behind them. “My arm is fine now, thank you. The salve really helped.”

Dahyun’s grin widened into something more comfortable. “Yeah, Jihyo-unnie is a genius with medicines. I always end up with bumps and scrapes, so she made it as a sort of cure-all just for me.”

Tzuyu didn’t really like the way Dahyun’s tone brightened around the name -- whoever Jihyo was -- but she settled for a small nod. “Give her my thanks, then.”

“Sure.” Dahyun lifted a hand to rub at the back of her own neck. “I would have dropped by earlier, but it feels like there’s a new fire every time I so much as turn around.”

Tzuyu nodded again; since the day Dahyun had walked her home in polite silence, entire streets had been burning every single night. After her injury, her mother had been much firmer about keeping Tzuyu from running off to investigate again, and they’d been fortunate enough to not have had their own house go up in flames just yet. “Did you see any more dragons?”

“Not in the flesh,” said Dahyun with a shrug. “But there are always tracks, or scratch marks on the walls. And usually someone in the troop will at least catch a glimpse of one before they’re able to fly off again.”

“I see,” Tzuyu said. “I think the dragons are sick.”

Dahyun blinked. “What?”

“Chaeyoung is the historian’s apprentice now,” said Tzuyu. “We’ve been reading through the village’s history for the past century or so. The only times dragons have been sighted when fires were involved was when a sickness was traveling through their colony.” Tzuyu scratched absentmindedly at her arm, the freshly healed cut as rigid and bumpy as a dragon’s back under her fingertips. “Symptoms included bleeding from the feet, stiffness in the wings, and uncontrollable flame projection.” 

Dahyun whistled. “Someone took really good notes a hundred years ago.”

Tzuyu turned to face Dahyun. “So you get it, right, unnie? It’s not that the dragons are purposely setting the fires. And we can’t blame them for being sick.”

“Yeah, I get it,” Dahyun said gently. “But the fires are still an issue. Im Nayeon has already run herself to the ground putting them out every night, even with her new apprentice helping. We’re trying to keep a water reserve ready, but the river is still too far away for easy access, especially if the fire is on the other side of the village.”

“That’s it.” Tzuyu straightened, and then jumped to her feet. “Nayeon-unnie will be able to fix this.” 

Dahyun blinked up at her. “What?”

“She can come up with a cure for the sickness,” Tzuyu said. “I’ve seen her do it for horses and songbirds and even a hellhound, once.”

“Alright,” said Dahyun. She let out an exhale, and then got up with some effort. “It’s worth asking. Do you mind if I come along?”

Tzuyu shook her head. She might have said something out loud, but she was too busy being very aware of how while standing, the back of Dahyun’s elbow had briefly brushed against her hand.

The two of them walked down the street to Nayeon’s house, the quiet echoing in their ears just barely on the wrong side of comfortable. Tzuyu resorted to tucking her hands into her pockets so she wouldn’t have to worry about any more accidental touches. Still, Dahyun would sometimes walk close enough that Tzuyu, if she looked, would be able to count every strand of hair that had escaped Dahyun’s ponytail.

Instead, Tzuyu focused on the path directly ahead of them, and putting one foot in front of the other.

“I’m sorry.”

Tzuyu stopped, turning to stare at Dahyun. “Unnie?”

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to say ‘sorry’ so suddenly.” Dahyun tried for a laugh, but then quickly trailed off before starting again. “I just wish I’d kept in touch with you and Chaeyoung more these last few years. I really should have.”

“It’s not your fault,” said Tzuyu. “You’re always patrolling, or going on missions for months at a time. You don’t have to be sorry for that.”

“I could’ve tried harder,” Dahyun said firmly. “So I’m sorry, Tzuyu. And I’m going to find Chaeyoung and tell her, too. Maybe later we can get drinks together and finally catch up.”

Tzuyu briefly recalled Chaeyoung’s first night of alcohol, right after she and Tzuyu had finished with school and Dahyun had taken them to the tavern to celebrate. And just a few days earlier, when Chaeyoung purposely tried to set a book of records on fire just to see what it felt like to be a dragon. “It might be better if we get drunk in the privacy of one of our houses.”

Dahyun chuckled. “That works too.” 

Silence fell once more, but there was enough air in between them now to breathe. Tzuyu let herself smile, fists uncurling before she pulled them out of her pockets. Dahyun walked a little too close a couple more times before they reached Nayeon’s house, but Tzuyu was the one to bump their shoulders.

\--

(“Hey,” Chaeyoung slurred, cheek pressed firmly on top of the bar counter. “Where’s Tzuyu?”

“She went to the washroom,” said Dahyun. “Do you need to go, too?”

“Not yet.” With great effort, Chaeyoung lifted her head enough to sit up straight. Then she leaned forward, elbows sliding heavily along the countertop so she could squint at Dahyun. “Unnie, if you like her, you should do something about it.”

Dahyun immediately scoffed. “Chaeng, you’re drunk.”

“I’m eighteen,” said Chaeyoung. “Which means I’m done with school, forever, and also done with you trying to hide your gigantic infatuation with a girl who wouldn’t even notice us if we were standing next to her and she was looking straight ahead.”

“I do not have a crush on Tzuyu,” Dahyun hissed, ears burning -- the tavern was pretty warm, and she was sure at least half the patrons must be looking at them since Chaeyoung was speaking so loudly. “And she is not that tall.”

“No.” Chaeyoung shook her head solemnly. “We are ants. We are small, tiny ants being perpetually crushed by your gigantic crush, which is on her, a gigantic giant.”

Dahyun sighed and waved the bartender over. “That’s it, we’re getting you some water.” She turned to jab a finger in Chaeyoung’s direction. “And for the record, Tzuyu would still notice us, even if we were ants. I once saw her pick up a spider on the schoolhouse steps and bring it to the grass so it wouldn’t get stepped on.”

Chaeyoung only grinned, obediently accepting the water Dahyun slid over to her. She set down the glass after a few gulps, mumbling something as she wiped her mouth with the back of her hand.

Dahyun blinked. “Did you say something?”

“Don’t play dumb,” Chaeyoung repeated, with a smugness that shouldn’t be achievable by someone more than twelve hours away from being sober. “About having a crush on Tzuyu, I mean.”

Dahyun groaned. “Chaeyoung, I swear --”

“Is she back yet?” Chaeyoung rubbed lazily at her stomach. “I need to throw up when she’s done.”

Dahyun rolled her eyes, sliding off of the bar stool and standing by Chaeyoung so that she could rest an arm on Dahyun’s shoulders. “You’re lucky that I love you,” Dahyun grumbled, ignoring Chaeyoung’s obnoxious cackling as she helped the younger girl out of the tavern.)

\--

Dahyun wasn’t sure what exactly she’d been expecting when Tzuyu said they were going to Nayeon’s, but she definitely hadn’t thought a witch’s house would look so...normal. At least from the outside, with a small paved path to the doorstep and neat patches of herbs lining either side -- although many of the plants grew in various exotic hues, and some seemed to glow even in the sunlight.

Tzuyu opened the door without knocking, and Dahyun hesitantly stepped over the threshold after the other girl. Her eyes widened at the open room they’d walked into: the walls were lined with shelves from the floor to the ceiling, each filled with glass jars and bundles of dried vegetation. A giant cauldron bubbled in the middle of the room, and next to it sat a woman Dahyun recognized as Nayeon’s apprentice, hunched over the parchment she was busily scribbling on.

“Momo-unnie,” Tzuyu said. The apprentice immediately looked up -- ink stain smeared across her cheek -- and grinned, reminding Dahyun of a small child on a day off from school. Tzuyu smiled back. “Where’s Nayeon-unnie?”

“In the back,” Momo said just as Nayeon emerged from the doorway across the room. “Oh. I mean, she’s right here.”

“Tzuyu!” Nayeon beamed and rushed over to pull Tzuyu into a tight hug. “It’s good to see you.”

Dahyun expected Tzuyu to pull away immediately; when they were younger, Tzuyu had hardly let anyone besides her and Chaeyoung get so close. But while Tzuyu’s expression clearly suggested she’d rather be anywhere else besides in Nayeon’s arms, she made no move to extract herself.

“And who are you?” Momo asked brightly.

Dahyun shook herself out of her thoughts to return Momo’s smile. “I’m Kim Dahyun. Tzuyu thinks that the dragons that have been burning the village every night are suffering from an illness, so we came to ask if you could help us cure them.”

“An illness, huh?” Nayeon said from behind, and Dahyun barely stopped herself from jumping in surprise. Nayeon didn’t laugh out loud, but her eyes still curved a little too happily for Dahyun’s liking. “I suppose that would make sense. Contrary to popular rumors, dragons rarely attack human settlements, even when provoked. Good thinking, Tzuyu.”

Tzuyu’s cheek dimpled at the praise. Dahyun glanced back at Nayeon, but the witch had already wandered to the other side of the cauldron.

Momo flipped her parchment over, smoothing it out and dipping her quill into the pot of ink beside her knee. “What sort of illness is it, do you think?” 

“I can get you a copy of the historian’s records from previous incidents,” Tzuyu said. “But the symptoms include fatigue and poor coordination, as well as bleeding, mostly from the feet.”

“And the tendency to set multiple houses on fire per night,” Dahyun added.

Nayeon hummed, absentmindedly dipping a finger into the clearly boiling cauldron before sticking said finger in her mouth to taste it. “I think I’m getting an idea already.” She walked over to the nearest shelf, scanning the contents critically. Then she stood on her tiptoes, reaching for a jar of refreshingly purple liquid. After waving her hand fruitlessly for a few seconds, Nayeon stepped back with a huff and turned to pout at Tzuyu. “Could you get that for me, please?”

Tzuyu rolled her eyes. “Alright, unnie.” She walked over and retrieved the jar without even lifting her heels off of the ground. Nayeon beamed, arm wrapping snugly around Tzuyu’s waist again as she cooed her thanks.

“Are you feeling okay?”

“What?” Dahyun quickly turned to look down at Momo. “Me, feeling okay? Yes, I am.” She resisted the urge to return to staring at the pair across the room.

Momo frowned. “Are you sure? You kind of look like your stomach is trying to do its best impression of this.” She jerked a thumb at the cauldron.

Dahyun spared the angrily bubbling liquid a brief glance before clearing her throat. “I was just thinking that she could’ve gotten the jar with like, magic or something. Shouldn’t summoning spells exist?”

“Well, sure,” said Momo. “But Tzuyu’s right there, and I’m pretty sure she likes being helpful when Nayeon asks for it. It’s kind of cute -- like a puppy, right?”

“Right,” Dahyun said, exhaling heavily through her nose. 

“I think these should do to start,” Nayeon announced as she returned to the cauldron, Tzuyu in tow. She began uncorking a few glass bottles and pouring them in. Momo stood up, accepting the handfuls of dried leaves Nayeon held out to her, and crushed them between her fingers before sprinkling them in as an even powder. “If we can get one of the infected dragons to ingest this, we can add a diffusion spell that can help the medicine spread to the rest of the colony when it returns.” 

Dahyun nodded. “I can help you distribute the potion to all of the rangers. And maybe Jihyo-unnie could help, too. Normally she just deals with humans, but I bet she knows a bit about healing other creatures.”

“Oh, Park Jihyo. Asking her is a good idea, but don’t tell her I said that.” Nayeon set the last empty jar down and wiped her hands on her robe. “I’ll consult with her later. Tzuyu, could you help Momo with stirring -- oh, your arm.”

“It’s fine, unnie,” said Tzuyu even as Nayeon pushed up her sleeve to take a closer look at the healed cut. “I just got scratched by a dragon last week, but Dahyun-unnie helped me.”

“It might scar later.” Nayeon held on for an unnecessary second before releasing Tzuyu’s wrist. “Let me know if the mark stays, and we can try some things to make it fade more.” She suddenly looked up at Dahyun. “You, Kim Dahyun, right? The ranger. Can you come with me for a second?”

Dahyun blinked as Nayeon’s arm settled around her shoulders. “Oh, uh, yeah. Sure.” 

Nayeon led them to the backroom she’d entered from earlier, which turned out to be a rather common-looking kitchen. “Tea?”

Dahyun thought briefly about how Nayeon had so casually sampled her uncomfortably colored potion just a few minutes earlier. The liquid flowing from the tea kettle now was at least an unconcerning amber color, but Dahyun decided to decline the offer anyway.

“Suit yourself,” Nayeon said, picking up her own cup. She closed her eyes before taking a careful sip. Then she lowered her tea to ask, “You don’t have a crush on Jihyo, do you?”

Dahyun was very glad that she hadn’t accepted any tea, because she would definitely have spit it all out at Nayeon’s face. “ _What?_ Of course not.”

“Good. She’s already attached to that annoying captain of yours, anyway,” said Nayeon, her tone something akin to what she might use to describe a particularly nasty clump of mud stuck to the bottom of her shoe. “I was just checking. But it might be in Tzuyu’s best interest for you to clarify that with her, too.”

Dahyun could only stare.

Nayeon frowned. “You’ve noticed, right? Every time you mentioned Jihyo, the poor girl was grinding her teeth so hard I thought she was scratching her nails down a chalkboard.” She examined Dahyun’s frozen expression for a few moments before shaking her head. “Okay, clearly the both of you are denser than bricks. And don’t think I didn’t notice you trying to curse me with your eyes every time I breathed in Tzuyu’s direction. I suppose that makes you a good match, at least.”

“I don’t have a crush on Tzuyu,” Dahyun finally said.

Nayeon scoffed and waved a hand in the air. “Who are you trying to convince? Because it’s definitely not me.” Dahyun had run out of words again, so Nayeon sighed and carefully set her teacup down. “I suppose this is just humanity’s fault, in the end. We’re always attaching different meanings to a single unfortunate word, which is a pretty silly way to communicate, if you ask me.”

The gears in Dahyun’s brain slowly creaked into motion once more, and she managed a halfhearted, “Doesn’t your entire profession revolve around words and their meanings?”

“Spells aren’t made of words. Just Latin,” said Nayeon. “And that’s also beside the point. What I’m talking about here is ‘love’.”

“ _Love?_ ” Dahyun felt the rest of the blood drain from her face. “I think we’re moving a little too quickly here.”

“But we’re not.” Nayeon folded her arms and rested her elbows on the table between them. She leaned forward. “Because I love Tzuyu.”

Dahyun swallowed. Her heart felt torn between plummeting past the roiling mess of emotions in her stomach and beating a harsh rhythm against her ribcage. “Oh,” she said. “I see.”

“No, you don’t.” Nayeon shook her head. Dahyun said nothing, watching as Nayeon’s fingers tapped out an unfairly accurate impression of the heartbeat rattling relentlessly inside her chest. Then Nayeon spoke again. “Did you know that I met Tzuyu while helping Myoui Mina shoe the yearlings in her family’s stable last spring? I was there because Sana made me, but Tzuyu came just because she likes horses.”

Dahyun’s mouth twitched.

Nayeon gave her a knowing look. “Yes, she’s adorable. But when you look at how either of us reacted to that thought, what do you see?” Dahyun’s expression blanked once more. Nayeon rolled her eyes and rounded the table, grabbing Dahyun’s hand and pulling it towards her. “Here. Feel this.”

“Um.” Dahyun jerked back as her fingers brushed Nayeon’s collarbone. “What -- what are you doing?” But Nayeon held her firmly, guiding Dahyun to just above the center of her own chest. Beneath the fabric now pressed against Dahyun’s palm, Nayeon’s heart pulsed, faint but steady.

“I love Tzuyu,” said Nayeon again, the words traveling from her chest and up Dahyun’s arm to shake Dahyun’s entire being. “And so do you.” Nayeon softened, tilting her head until Dahyun met her gaze. “We’re saying the same words, but don’t you think our hearts are speaking differently?”

“I love Tzuyu,” said Dahyun, and the hot pounding in her ears drowned out even her own voice.

“Exactly,” Nayeon said. She hummed for a moment, and then let go of Dahyun’s hand. “Like many others, we use ‘love’ to describe too many things. Because it’s something that can make you smile no matter the time of day, or trade banter for hours and hours, or feel so angry that it’s like all the blood in your body is boiling.” She pauses. “It can also make your heart so loud that you can’t possibly hear anything else. Because nothing else in the entire world will ever come close to mattering as much.”

Dahyun swallowed. “Can you hear it? My heart, right now?”

“Just about,” said Nayeon, a smile curling her lips. “So stop worrying so much about what having a crush or being in love might mean. The brain isn’t meant for these kinds of issues, you know.”

Dahyun nodded once, and then again. “So,” she hesitated, “you don’t like -- you don’t love -- you don’t see Tzuyu the way I do? At all?” 

Nayeon tapped her chin in mock deep thought. “As much as Sana might be open to adding a third to our relationship, I don’t think Tzuyu would be the one for either of us.”

“Oh.” Dahyun let out a laugh. “Right. Okay.”

“Okay.” Nayeon grinned, and then gave her a firm pat on the shoulder. “Then you know what to do.”

“I do,” said Dahyun, and took a deep breath before turning to walk back to the main room. 

Tzuyu glanced up from the cauldron, brightening when Dahyun approached. “Unnie, look! The potion’s almost ready. You can take it to the rangers as soon as tonight.”

“Great,” said Dahyun, the smile attempting to reach her lips stuttering slightly. Momo silently gave her a thumbs up from behind Tzuyu. So Dahyun took another breath. “And after the dragons are cured and the village is no longer on fire, I was wondering if I could ask you something.”

Tzuyu blinked at her, eyes wide and earnest. “What is it, unnie?”

Dahyun’s heart didn’t stop pounding so loudly, even then. But she did feel the rhythm of it rising up her throat, and let it melt her mouth into a grin so wide that it might just split her face in half. 

Because if Nayeon was in the room, Dahyun was sure she’d already be able to hear Tzuyu’s answer, too, beating so fervently inside of her chest that it could break through and join Dahyun’s: a harmony composed over dusty soccer games and growing up with every sunset, and unspoken vows to begin making up for lost time.

\--

A week after visiting Nayeon’s house, Tzuyu ended up in the training field of the rangers’ barracks.

With the combined forces of Nayeon, Momo, and Jihyo with the rangers, the cure had rapidly spread through the entire dragon colony. The fires stopped after only a few days -- which was when Tzuyu took up the offer to spend the first free day Dahyun had to teach her archery.

Dahyun gaped at the fifth bullseye Tzuyu had shot in the past fifteen minutes. “Is it too late to consider recruiting you?”

“I don’t think I could bring myself to shoot at something that’s actually alive,” Tzuyu said. She handed the bow back to Dahyun. “So I’ll leave the difficult job to you, unnie.”

Dahyun chuckled, pulling at the bowstring absentmindedly. “This did ruin my grand scheme to teach you how to shoot, though. I figured we’d be here a lot longer, so I didn’t plan anything else fun to do.”

“Anything is fun,” said Tzuyu, tucking her hair behind her ear. “Since it’s with you.”

And the words didn’t even have to mean anything, really. Because Tzuyu’s dimple showed as she smiled and the scar on her arm could hardly be seen now, even without Nayeon’s help -- as if the pure, fierce kindness in Tzuyu was magic enough.

Dahyun’s heart stretched and strained, aching with fondness and something sweeter. So she listened to it, and stepped closer. “Tzuyu-yah. Can I kiss you?”

Tzuyu’s eyes shone with a yearning brighter than starlight, like Dahyun was the only thing she ever needed to see again. She didn’t say anything as she leaned down just enough, nose brushing Dahyun’s as they let the moment breathe.

Then Dahyun followed the bold, pounding beat of their relentless hearts, finally tilting her head the rest of the way. And thought that if the heavens had a sound, it wouldn’t be anything but this.

**Author's Note:**

> follow @likeuwuahh on twitter and ao3 she's pretty great!!


End file.
